Dumb can be dangerous

So we love our clever villains, our smooth criminals, the conniving sly characters that use their brains to thwart the heroes and be a real menace. Like the riskiest game of chess, the hero has to match that kind of villain in strategy and smarts as well as determination, prowess, or other skills.

The suspense can be immense, and so is the entertainment. If done well, the villain will be unpredictable, terrifying, and utterly deadly just through the power of their mind. They may not even need to ever raise their voice before the endgame.



And that's all well and good, but have you considered that a stupid villain might be ten times more terrifying than the dastardly one? Hear me out:

I'm not talking about a garden variety idiot that is fodder for the heroes to demonstrate to the audience how they deal with a menace before the real plot kicks off.

I'm talking about the idiot that has access to nuclear weapons, or the idiot with Batman levels of money, or the idiot with laser beam powers.

A person who has great power, if you will, but lacks the capacity to think ahead about how to use it, even if it is for villainous goals.


Granted, I think this villain was an idiot unintentionally, but he still works as a prime example

A villain who has limited intelligence is likely to be impulsive, not think things through, and go for instant gratification. These are often traits that will lead to their demise, but they are also the very same traits that can make such a villain completely unpredictable.

All it takes to get such a villain to veer off a plan or warp it is someone or something that will convince them it's a fastest path to success, or a different goal will yield more dividends, even if that goal clearly comes with serious caveats: they will press the red button to destroy their competition before they realize that it will also destroy their consumer base, for example.

These villains also tend to have a very high impression of themselves, thinking themselves very clever. This definitely helps to lead them to their downfall…


…but it's what and who they have access to that will determine who they will take with them.


If you have been thinking of real (and famous/infamous) people while reading this, it's intentional, and I guarantee you that whoever you thought of is determined solely by your location and awareness of current events. They each make a great dumb villain design for your future comics!

Or is there one in your cast already?

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